Metro is considering paying a contractor $1 million to oversee a new computer software program to help Nashville enforce its regulations over short-term rental properties.

But moving forward on the proposal — at least immediately — faced questioning Tuesday in the Metro Council, which ultimately voted to defer consideration of the contract until Feb. 7.

Mayor Megan Barry's administration has orchestrated a preliminary deal with Host Compliance LLC that would pay the company $1,000,950 over five years to manage a new program designed to help Metro's ability to identify homes rented out through Airbnb or other companies that are illegally operating without permits, among other codes issues.

Mayor's office officials said they began talks with the contractor after they received a letter signed by 28 council members this past fall demanding action on the city's lack of short-term rental regulation enforcement. The software is among a host of recommendations outlined in a recent study of the performance of the Metro Planning Department's Property Standards division.

"We want to do something, and what we're presenting today is part of that solution," Metro Finance Director Talia Lomax-O'dneal said.

But some council members said they want to first see how the system would work before they approve a million-dollar transaction. A special council Codes Committee meeting is set for 5:30 p.m. Thursday for contractors to give a tutorial of the software.

Council members John Cooper and Steve Glover used a committee meeting Tuesday to press the administration on the lack of formal bidding from Metro before the city chose Host Compliance. Glover also questioned the urgency of the contract.

"Why do we always get this stuff and we're rushed?" Glover said. "We have to do it right now — why?"

The mayor's office has presented the proposal as a sole-source contract, meaning it believes Host Compliance is the lone vendor that can perform the service.

Jeff Gossage, Metro's purchasing agent, said Metro contacted 14 cities that use computer software for short-term rental services. He said the city identified three companies that perform work aimed at enforcement, but two of those went out of business, leaving only Host Compliance.

"We could go through the RFP (request for proposal), but it would be only going out to one company to do this," Gossage said. "At this point, I'm convinced there are no (other) suppliers that can do this."

The council's Budget and Finance Committee voted to recommend approval of the contract, but three other committees voted for a deferral. By rule, that meant the full council had to defer the resolution as well.

Metro has struggled to enforce regulations over Airbnb after passing new rules in 2014 that included a permitting process and a cap on the number of guests allowed. The council next month is set to consider separate legislation that would place a moratorium on short-term rental homes in which a property owner doesn't live in the house being rented.

Guided by the new codes report, the mayor's office also is recommending an additional seven codes employees to help with short-term rental enforcement. Lomax-O'dneal said bringing in Host Compliance would offset additional codes positions for short-term rental enforcement that would need to be created if the company isn't hired.

Host Compliance is used by several city governments in the U.S. and Canada, including Los Angeles; Asheville, N.C.; Oakland, Calif.; Toronto; and Vancouver.

In addition to monitoring and enforcing regulations, the software is meant to help cities collect data on the extent of noncompliance issues, estimate rental activity for permitted and unpermitted properties and maintain a 24-hour hotline to take in short-term rental complaints.